Curtain



May 21,1946. R. s. TEMKO ETAL CURTAIN Filed March 14, 1944 l2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i/IO L l lIEI al r s T N E V m May 21, 1946 R. s. TEMKo E-rAL 2,400,788

l CURTAIN Filed March 14, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fuf/fm 51%@ mz? Patented May 21, 1946 Richard SQ Temko,`New York, andAbraha-xn Katz, ,f i. 'K

Bronx, N. Y.,assignoraly` direct andfines'nelf`- i i' assignments, to Homef "Curtain Corni, Far

Rockaway, Y., a corporationsof;y lflevifV York v Application March 14, 1944jsggiai Magszaiiag 1 Glaim. "(,Clt 2-243')f This invention relates generally to curtains and more particularly to a novel and useful curtain construction of the edge portions of thel curtain panel'.

The desirability of having extra Weight in a.

curtain at the margins thereof for the purpose of obtaininga more nearly uniform hanging has been recognized heretofore in the curtain. art, but; prior constructions have been open to objection because of certain structure or use charac--` teristicsiwhich are remedied by the present invention. L

Among the objects of the presentinvention lies the; provision of curtain panel edge structure wherein.' additional. weight or body is obtained at the margins of the curtain panel without the addition of eXtra Weight providing elements. In the present construction, the additional weight or body" at'the margins of the curtain panel is obtained by folds or lamination of the material of which the curtain panel is composed'. While itr hasbeen known toobtain additional Weight or body by this general procedure such4 prior art constructions have been of an .unbalanced nature vso that when the individual threads of` which. the curtain. panel material was composed were subjected kto` varying degrees of.V humidity, the threads; in changing their length or twist caused an consequent twisting or rolling of the curtainedge. rIhis eiect was most noticeable in'. curtain panels composed of relativelyi'lnely Woven fabric; the very fabric which required the greatest amount of edgeqweighting. In accordance with the present invention a balanced effect is obtainedY at the curtain panel edge by asymmetrical Vfoldingo vthe curtain panel material.

An advantage ofV the presenty construction lies in the fact that since Weight is obtained 'at the edges of the curtain panel by a laminating of the same material of which the curtain panel is composedv when the curtain is laundered or cleaned all of 'the material both in the body of the curtainfpanel and at the' edge has the same shrinkage Arate so thatv distortion of the curtain panel due 'to diierent materials being incorporatedxtlierein' is avoided.. Y

Anotherk object ofthe present invention lies in the provision ofcurtain `construction having the herein `mentioned desirable qualities and yet which isof such a simple nature that the same may be rapidly fabricated in `large scale at lowA cost. The present structure gives rise to economies inA the. execution thereof as will morev fully appear. hereinafter,

laminatedgedge curtain lpanel structure `which ruzovixziesnotv only'a symmetricalv balance otweght so as; to produce n 4a l ,correspondingly,,balanced hanging; but` also. provides; a. balanced appearance so that the nish oi the curtain edge isgsubstan- ,tia-ily identical Whenj viewed. eitherfromthe front side of: the; curtainpanel. ort-he-rear.l side thereat.

Anotherzobject herein lieszinthe provision of Curtain; panel; edge constructionWhereini curtain ...edge portions;A inmlaminated-L arrangement are secured at. aI plurality of, points along a lplurality ofv spaced ,vertical lines.- in `the curtain, as hang- .inaby a-.single'rowtof Stiijclnes..41V z; VAnotherobiect.hellem lieshin the provision of laminated. edge! .construction inu curtain,y panels whereintherlaminations are obtained bya `plurality o t iolds.. A ,'I-herelatiyelyiopen `portions of the folds ,aneginterconnectedoat .a plurality of not only ,whiletheeurtein is hangingin use but .alseduring laundering end/or pressing steps@ B y virtue of; the interconnection lofthe lrelatiujely Hopen panels oi the; curtainvipanel edge, .dust and .lint are.` inhibited.` from entering therein- .While the. curtain isg` use` `or during any cleaning process.,

dyamageswnimgre inline-ppeerr iatheml'ogress ,These Objects .otherincidental ends` and of ,this disclosureenetbe ,eeietedew 11.1 the. ep-

` @plIn the drswingsVi-nl*which similiar reference 1 Yjrigliie 3 ;i s an enlargediragmentary frontlele- Lcurtainpninl Figure 1,

eharacters Geeignete; 03F. respondne;`` Darts .thleueheuttheeeveral inet/Siri. Figure V1is .a reduced froiittelevational view .of a curtain panel-1 embodying `etiiret fermefihe invention. g y

,Figure 2;,areefr.elevetenalvewef Eigure 1 ondembodimerittoifthef invention..

. 'Figure amari eiia'eivauna1viafpf` Figure 7 asf seeng from ,theleirt thereof.. l

Another-'object herein'lies in the provision of 55 Figurefaf';la.rearieleiiational-view o f. Figurerl.

Figure 10 is a sectional view as seen from the plane lil-I on Figure 7. Y

For the purpose of clarity in the disclosure an the drawings the thickness of the parts has been exaggerated particularly in the sectional views, Figures 6 and 10.

Turning now to the first embodimentof the invention illustrated in Figures 1-6, inclusive, the

curtain generally indicated by numeral I0 may` be of any desired size and includes broadly the curtain panel II, a top edge I2, a bottom edge i3 and side edges I4 and I5. As the curtain is normally hung, the side edges I4 and I5 are vertically disposed, usually longitudinally of the curtain. While only a singlecurtain ID is shown,

it will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which the present invention relates that a plurality of corresponding curtains may be hung in pairs or in any other desired arrangement.. The curtain l may be provided in a well known manner with a rod carrying passage |6 disposed adjacent the top edge I2. In normal use, all of the materials or partsllyingbelow the rod carrying passage I6 are supported by the portions of the curtain at the rod carrying portion. Y

As will more fully appear in the progress of this disclosure, the present invention relates particularly to the edge'portions of the curtain panel and the advantageous effects thereof may be utilized to advantage in the top edge I2. The top edge I2, if so treated, will'also present a more desirable appearance, although the need for the avoidance of puckering ortwisting along the top edge of the curtain panel is not sonecessary because of the fact that a ruiile appearance at this area is usually found and because the curtain panel is supported in position against undesired twisting by the rod itself (not shown).

Since the edge formation of the'curtain panel is substantially identical in a repetitive series:

therealong, a detailed description of a portion thereof will suffice for all. The curtain panel Il may be composed of any suitable planar base material 9 well known in the art. As best seen in Figures 3, and 6, the panel at the edge |4 is folded inwardly upon itself to form a first fold I8, the bight or bend I9 of which is closed along the outer free edge of the curtain; the portions and 2| being lapped and in juxtaposition. IIhe portion 2| of the base 9 is againvr'eversed in the position thereof to form a second fold 22. having a bight or bend 23, and the base'materiallthen continues outwardly of the curtain panel to form the portion 24, which juxtaposes the portion 2|. From this point forward, the base 9 is again rereversed in direction to form the third fold 25,

Vthe bight or bend 26 of which is disposed outwardly in substantially the same manner as the bight |9 while the base fabric portion 21 juxta- 4poses the previous mentioned portion 24.4 The Vbase 9 continues inwardly of the curtain panel to form the band portion 21 and is reversed again in direction at the fourth fold 28, the bight 29 of which faces inwardly and terminatesin the portion 3D, the original free edge of the fabric 9 being indicated by numeral 3|. The position taken by the parts is clearly shown in Figure 6.

The parts in the positions as described are maintained by two sets of stitches, a rst set generally indicated byV reference character 32 and a second set indicated by reference character 33.

YThe second set maybe referred to as the inner Vset of stitches and they may be in the form of a single row of lock stitching.v Since this; last mentioned stitching secures the parts together along a single longitudinal line, other comparable types of stitching having the same securing effect may be used.

The set of stitches 32 includes a row of longitudinally directed stitch sections 34 which are spaced from and parallel to the edge I4 and are nearer to the bight 23 of the second fold 22 than they are to the bights 26 and I9 of the third and first folds and IS, respectively, At preferably uniformly spaced intervals along the row of longitudinally directed stitch sections 34 there are transversely directed stitch sections 3'5. These last mentioned stitch sections extend from the row 34 outwardly of the curtain panel and terminate at points inwardly of the edge I4 and of theoutermost portions of the bights 26 and I9. The first set of stitches 32 as described, will then i present asubstantially identical appearance as tain edgel seen from the front on Figure 3 and as seen from theV rear on Figure 5. The outer terminals 3G of the transversely directed stitched sections 35 thus secure the portions 20 and 2| to each other and theportions 24 and 21 to each other, and in ad- Ythreads which form. the longitudinally directed stitched sections 34 and are preferably such in View of the resultant speed of production and consequent economy.

It may thus be seen that by virtue of the construction just described, the edge I4 of the panel Il is strengthened and reinforced by the positioning at said edge of four separate laminations of the base fabric 9 and that such reinforcement is located right at-the edge most likely to receive undue Wear and stress. Not only do the laminations of the fabricrstrengthen the edge but also they add Weight right at the edge which causes the curtain to take on a better hung appearance. This is so because when the edge is of relatively light nature, that is to say, insufflciently weighted, there is a tendency for the fabric thereat to twist and Wrinkle and otherwise become deleteriously affected by the weight of the curtain as it extends below any given point on the edge and by changes in humidity and twist of set of the'fabrics and the thread making up the base fabric 9. Since the laminations formed bythe portions 20, 2|, 24 and 21 are composed of the identical material of which the"balance'fofthe curtain panel is composed, expansion or contraction of individual threads due-to changes in humidity or during washing or laundering will notdisadvantagecusly affect the position and general texture of the p-arts. This may be contrasted with curtain edge reinforcing constructions in which a new material or filler differing from the base material of the curtain panel is introduced to add Weight along the cur- By virtue of the Vpeculiar arrangement of the rst set of stitches 3'. with relation to the folded parts, the folds and laminations are substantially prevented from shifting with relation to each other so that no special manipulation of the parts is needed to properly place them for a pressing or ironing operation after cleaning or laundering. Y

As may be seen from a perusal of Figure 6, the laminations formed by the portions 2| and 24 are equally balanced by the overlying portions 20 and 21 at `the front and rear respectively. This balanced arrangement of the parts also acts to prevent unkempt twisting or curling of the edge of the curtain, an undesirable effect frequently encountered `where edge weighting is attempted by rolling the edge thereof, particularly in the more delic-ate fabrics which are otherwise most desirable for decorative Window treatment.

As best seen in Figures 3 and 5 with the exception of the fourth fold 28 and its exposed fourth bight or bend 29, the appearance of the front of the curtain I0 at the vertical edges and the horizontal lower edge thereof (the portions most usually viewed by the user) is substantially identical with the rear surface thereof. This is a distinct advantage since, when curtains are hung, very frequently portions of the rear surface of the curtain (the rear surface being that surface which is nearest the window or other building opening with which the curtain is associated) are exposed to the view of persons facing the curtain from the front. This condition occurs when the curtains are blown by the wind or when they are deliberately rotated at the vertical edges thereof in certain draping arrangements or where tie backs are used. It is to be noted in connection with the last mentioned arrangement of the i edges that although the edges themselves are turned toward the room, that is to say toward the front of the curtain panel, this turning is a deliberate one and the decorative hanging and the visual effect thereof is hurt by a twisting, coiling or curling of the actual curtain edge, that is to say outwardly of the set of stitches 33 or of the longitudinal stitched sections 34.

Turning now to the second embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figures 7-10, inclusive, for the purpose of avoiding needless repetition parts corresponding to the first embodiment of the invention are given the same reference characters with the addition of the prex 2.

As seen in Figures and 9, one way in which the second embodiment differs from the first is that the transversely directed stitched sections generally indicated by 235 include diagonally arranged stitched sections 236 and 231. Y

Another difference in the sets of stitches 232 and 233 is that in the case of stitches 232 the longitudinally directed stitched sections 234 are located outwardly of the longitudinal line along which the inner ends of the transversely directed stitched sections penetrate the curtain. This construction while anchoring the second bight 223 at a number of spaced points preferably suiciently close to each other to prevent undesirable shifting of said bight as the curtain is cleaned, hung 5 3 or used, also secures the bights 2|9 and 226 to each other along a greater proportion of the edge CFI 214 than in the other embodiments.

The second set of stitches 233 is constructed similarly to the first set of stitches 232 with the stitching arranged however, in an opposite position so that the longitudinally directed stitched sections 233 are located on the curtain panel Il inwardly of the transversely directed stitched sections 239, the latter lincluding the diagonally stitched sections 240 and 24|. Thus, in the set of stitches 233, the several portions of the base fabric 9 are connected along a plurality of spaced vertically directed lines, as the curtain is hung, by a single set of stitches. This construction provides for the increase in the width of the portion 233 with a consequent increase in the weight of the curtain therealong and yet the portion 230 is anchored at two points so that it may not shift out of position undesirably.

It may thus be seen that we have disclosed a novel and useful curtain construction which produces increased edge weighting and balanced sewn edge construction in curtains by a simple and economical construction.

We wish it to be understood that we do not desire to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, for obvious modi cations will occur to' a person skilled in the art.

We claim:

A curtain comprising a, single curtain fabric having a free longitudinal edge thereof folded over on itself a predetermined distance and stitched to said fabric by a row of stitching, the

f portion of said folded fabric between the said row of stitching and the folded edge thereof being additionally folded to provide two outwardly rounded folded edges and an inwardly rounded folded edge disposed a predetermined distance inwardly from said outwardly rounded edges and in a plane between the planes of the said outwardly rounded folded edges to form four overlying layers of fabric adjacent the edge thereof, the said four layers being maintained in position by stitching passing through said four layers, said last named stitching comprising rst stitch sections disposed parallel to said folded curtain edge and second stitch sections angularly disposed with respect to said first stitch sections and at spaced intervals along the said curtain edge thus enabling a curtain of relatively light weight fabric to be reinforced and strengthened to help maintain its unwrinkled shape.

RICHARD S. TEMKO. ABRAHAM KATZ. 

